Combative Andy Murray needs more killer instinct than variety

Versatility. That is Andy Murray’s greatest asset, as well as his most conspicuous liability. Few sports offer quite as much scope for tactical variation as tennis, and Murray uses it to its limits. He can defend, move at speed, attack, hit top-spin, slice, play in the forecourt, or so deep that he ends up in the shadows, and he can do all these things with almost equal facility.

Yesterday, on a hot Centre Court that verged at times on oppressive, the Scot was not in the most immaculate form, but he did enough to win in straight sets against Mikhail Kukushkin, of Kazakhstan. His 27-year-old opponent, who took a set off Rafael Nadal this time last year, threatened in patches, most notably at the end…